Patrick Stevens' coverage of college sports in D.C./Baltimore/Virginia, just the same as ever

01/26/2010

The Juggernaut's Journey: Cory Jackson added to Senior Bowl roster

Cory Jackson left his phone back in his apartment during his workout today in Atlanta.

By the time the former Maryland fullback returned, he had the best news of his pre-NFL Draft training process: He had a last-second invitation to the Senior Bowl.

"I wouldn’t mind and playing with Tebow and some
the top dogs," Jackson said as he packed for a whirlwind trip.

Jackson was supposed to play in the Feb. 6 Texas vs. the Nation game in El Paso. But those plans quickly changed today.

Upon seeing several messages, one he noticed was from Kevin Glover, Maryland's director of character education and the program's contact for NFL teams.

"I figured he needed to ask me about the last class I have to take," Jackson said. "Instead, it was 'Cory, get ahold of me as soon as possible to see if we can figure out how to get you into the Senior Bowl. I was like, 'Holy [cow], the Senior Bowl.'"

It turns out, the North team --- coached by the Detroit Lions' staff --- wanted to run plays that require a power blocker. Once they got to Mobile, they discovered they didn't have one.

Hence the last-second call, and a chance for Jackson to play in the most high profile of the college all-star games.

He'll fly from Atlanta to Mobile tonight at 9:40 p.m., then have a quick interview with the Lions' staff. Tomorrow, he'll begin practice for Saturday's game.

"I really wasn't expecting this one at all," Jackson said. "The same thing happened to Moise [Fokou] last year, too. He got the last-minute call. Apparently, they said they wanted to run a power offense, didn't have someone to block and said 'Why don't you get another guy out here.' My agent has been calling for a while. He gave me a call and I said 'Hell, yeah, I'm there.'"